Kids CookingShow

Your kids love to cook int eh kitchen, why not make a production of it!

Let your kids pick out their favorite recipe and invite over some friends. Stage your kitchen for their cooking "show" and let them go!

They will have a ball getting a chance to show everyone how they can measure and cook.

The best part of all, everyone get's to share the samples in the end.

Little Learners

Your kids want to learn how to start cooking. Why not have some fun and create a Cooking Learners Permit.

Take a piece of paper and glue on a picture with your child's name and start date.

Post it on the refrigerator. Now each time your child learns a new skill write it and the date on the permit.

Now they have a visable reminder of how much they have learned and when they learned it.

Kitchen Playdate

Kids love to cook. If you do cook and don't mind teaching and the mess, let your kids invite friends over for a Cooking Playdate.

Make sure that you have everything that you need for the recipe that they are to prepare.

Once their creation has been made you can invite their family over to share, or box it all up and send them home with their treats.

SANDWICH HELP I

If you are tired of fixing your kids the same old boring sandwiches, try this for a change.

Grind up some leftover ham, about 1/2 cup or so.

Add to that some Drained crushed pineapple, about 1/4 cup.

Now mix in about 1 tbs of Brown Sugar and a dash of cloves.

Store in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Spread onto bread and you have a wonderful Hawaiian sandwich!

This will make 2 sandwiches.

Foil Fun

It is a rainy day and the kids are just driving you crazy. All you have to do is go to the kitchen and grab a box of aluminum foil.

Sit the kids down at the table and give them all a sizeable piece of foil.

Now they are free to crincle up the foil and create any animals that they can imagine like with playdough.

Once they are done creating they can even paint them with a thin layer of tempura paint.

Ice Cream Filters

Your kids love the ice cream treats on a stick, but you are tired of cleaning up all the little spills that occur.

You can help alleviate most of them by grabbing a round coffee filter.

Poke a small hole through the center and place the stick of the ice cream treat through the hole.

Now the drips will catch on the filter instead of all over your floor and furniture.

"Picturing" Dinner

If you have younger kids you can make a menu for them. As you prepare meals, take pictures of them and place in a binder.

Now when you are ready cook dinner, you can let your little one pick out the picture of their favorite food.

As they get older and start cooking with you more, they can try to make their creation look like the one in the picture.

MINI SANDWICHES

Do you get tired of making up a great big sandwich and having your toddler eat about 1/4 of it before saying that they are done?

Most stores carry mini loaves of bread that are used for making appetizers and coctail sandwiches.

Pick up a loaf and now you have the perfect sized sandwich bread for your toddler.

SMELLY LUNCHBAGS

You are making lunches for the kids. You smell something, and you can’t quite put your finger on it. Ewww, it is the lunch bag.

Most lunch bags are now cloth with a plastic lining. To deodorize the lunch bags, wipe out the interior thoroughly with a damp soapy rag.

If the smell persists, place 1 tablespoon of bleach into 1 quart of warm water.

Soak your rag for a moment (warning, use an old or white rag as the bleach will ruin a colored rag) and wring out thoroughly.

Being careful not to drip any bleach water on the outside of your bag (it will discolor your bag) or your clothing, wipe out the interior only of the bag thoroughly. Leave the top open to air dry for at least 5 minutes.

Take a whiff, if the smell is still there repeat with previous step.

If you find that there is something that has soaked into the exterior of the bag you can spot clean it with some household cleaner (may spot or discolor depending on brand) or toss into the gentle cycle of your washing machine by itself. I will usually let mine air dry in the laundry room overnight.

SILLY SANDWICHES

If you have some finicky eaters or want to jazz up a boring lunch?

Break out the cookie cutters and let the kids cut out their favorite shapes from Lunch Meat and sliced cheeses.

You can even make up the full sanwiches first then cut out silly shapes.

Serve up with some Soup and Crackers and enjoy.

Muffin Mix In's

The next time you are making muffins with the kids, let them have a little fun. Fill a few small bowls or a muffin tin and fill with berries, fruit, chocolate chips, any kind of muffin mix in that you can think of.

Make up a batch of plain batter and fill your tins. Now let the kids add their own mix in's to the muffins. When they are done, take a toothpick and gently stir them in before baking.

Once they are baked your kids will have their own customized muffins.

Omlette Pizza

The next time that you make omlettes, try adding a bit of pepperoni and mozzerella cheese.

Now your kids won't balk at eating healthy food for breakfast!

Got Picky Eaters? Make it Picky Food!

If you have kids that are picky eaters it is always hard trying to get them to eat new things.

In fact sometimes even old things! Here is a handy little tip that just might help out with this problem.

The next time that you make a meal, try finding some decorative toothpicks or party picks that are shaped like animals, swords, or even just colored toothpicks.

Cut up all of the food on their plate and serve with a variety of picks.

They will have so much fun deciding which pick to use that they will eat their dinner in no time!

Kitchen Help from Kids II

Kids love to help in the kitchen, encourage it every time you get a chance. There are lots of ways that you can get them to help, and also help them to learn to work in the kitchen at any age.

I got a little step stool for my daughter so that she can have better access to the counters.

Also get an extra pack of sponges and cut them in half or cut out cute shapes so that they will fit easier into little hands. Now they will enjoy cleaning the kitchen with you!

Brownie Bonkers

Your kids are bored and you are trying to find something for them to do.

Grab a brownie mix and have a bit of fun.

Make up the mix according to the directions, but just before baking, mix in a cup of flavored chips (butterscotch, peanut butter, chocolate, white chocolate)

Once the brownies are done baking, grab a container of like flavored frosting or mix and match for fun.

Tea Party Fun

The kids are bored and bugging you for something to do.

Send them all to put on dress up clothes and have them grab a stuffed animal or doll to invite to a tea party.

While they are all changing put some water on to boil to make up the tea.

Pull out some cookies or crackers and set up the table.

Make the tea and place it on the table with some sugar and cookies.

Now sit everyone down and enjoy a cup of tea and some snacks.

This is also a good time to work on some etiquette.

Cookie Fun

The next time that you have a rainy day, or just a day where the kids are banging off the walls, try this for an easy project to keep them busy for a while.

Make up a batch of sugar cookies according to the directions.

Once the cookies are cooled grab some frosting and a few popsicle or new craft sticks.

Take two uniformly sized and shaped cookies, place about a tablespoon of frosting on one cookie.

Place the stick on the cookie like a lollypop stick, now place the second cookie on top of the stick and frosting creating a sandwich style cookie popsicle.

Now let them decorate and enjoy!

Kitchen Help from Kids I

Always having a hard time telling if the dishes in the dishwasher are clean or ditry? Let your kids help you with the solution.

Find a plastic hook that can attach to the door of the dishwasher.

Now get some craft foam and colorful markers and glitter.

Let your kids decorate a sign that says clean on one side and dirty on the other.

Now when they are done emptying the dishwasher all they have to do is flip the sign from clean to dirty.

They will enjoy seeing their creativity each day.

CHOCOLATE COVERED MARSHMALLOWS

For a fun treat any time of year, melt up some chocolate in any color.

Place a popsicle stick in the top of a large marshmallow.

Dunk the marshmallow into the chocolate thoroughly covering it all.

Before the chocolate has a chance to cool all the way, roll your marshmallow in candy decorations.

This is a fun treat for kids to make on special holidays using coordinating colors of chocolate and candies.

For example use white chocolate and green candies for St Patricks day, or white chocolate and red candies for Valentines day.

GRAHAM CRACKER COOKIES

Usually when you make a cake, you end up with a bit of icing left over.

It is usually not enough to save, but too much to throw away.

Spread the icing between 2 graham crackers and they make great cookies.

To store, simply place in an airtight container and leave in a cool dry place.

FUN SANDWICHES

You have seen them in the stores before, the white dumpling presses.

These are great for making cool sandwiches that your kids will love!

Just remove the crust from a piece of bread and place it in the center of the press making sure that the bread covers the whole thing.

Decide what you would like to fill it with and place in the center.

Press the 2 sides toghether and voile!

A fancy sandwich that your kids will love!

BURNED OUT MICROWAVE

OK, if you have a toddler in the house you know that they love to push buttons.

They see Mom/Dad heating up things in the microwave oven and they want to try it out for themselves, except there is nothing in the microwave.

This is very dangerous and can cause damage to your oven.

If you have a toddler that you have found is experimenting with buttons, make sure that you leave a mug of water in the microwave when you are not using it to help prevent damaging it.

SHARING THANKSGIVING

To really get kids into the festive spririt for Thanksgiving, get each one of the kids a cornish game hen.

As you are preparing the Turkey, let them prepare their own birds.

You can then bake them in their own roaster and as you baste your bird, they can baste theirs and for the feast they can enjoy their own creation.

This is a great learning experience and it keeps the kids occupied.

CHOCOLATE HAYSTACKS

An often forgotten treat that is so super simple to make during the fall is Haystacks.

We always had these around the house around Halloween, and they are so simple to make that anyone can have them any time.

Simply melt a 12 ounce package of chocolate chips and dump over 1 can of Chow Mien Noodles.

Mix well with a wooden spoon until all of the noodles are covered with chocolate.

Using a teaspoon scoop up some of the mixture and drop onto a piece of waxed paper that has been placed on a cookie sheet or large cutting board.

Let sit in a cool place until chocolate cools and becomes solid again.

COLORED SUGAR

When you are making up sugar cookies for Halloween it is sometimes fun to use colored sugar as part of the decoration before you make them. Then when you pull them out of the oven you can just pipe on a bit of frosting and they are done.

To make colored sugar, measure about 1 cup of sugar into a zip lock style baggie. Add about 2 drops of food color and close the bag. Knead the bag well to mix the color into the sugar until uniform in hue.

If you want to make orange, use one drop of red and one drop of yellow.

For purple use one drop of blue and one drop of red.

If you would like stronger colors, increase the coloring one drop at a time. Don't add too much or your sugar will become mush.

PUMPKIN SEEDS

OK, the pumpkin is gutted and carved, now you are trying to figure out what to do with the seeds.

Toasting the seeds will make a healthy and tasty snack.

From your seeds remove as many of the membranes as possible and throw away.

Place a large pan on the stove and fill with water. Add salt to the water using about 1 teaspoon for every cup. Bring the water to a boil and add your pumpkin seeds.

Reduce the heat to a simmer and simmer for about 2 hours. Remove from the heat and drain off all the water.

Place the seeds onto paper towels that have been placed on to wire racks and let sit in a cool dry place for at least 4 hours until dry.

Place the seeds into a large bowl and add a few tablespoons of vegetable oil and mix until all of the seeds are coated with oil. Place the seeds onto a clean dry baking sheet and place into an oven preheated to 350º.

Bake the seeds for 20-30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so. Remove from the oven and sprinkle lightly with salt and let cool.

You can serve immediately or you can store in a tightly sealed jar or container for up to 1 year.

SPICING UP A SACK LUNCH

Sack lunches can get boring very quickly. I will try to perk each one up by adding a variety of fruit and snacks.

I will pick up the individual sized containers of Carmel Apple dip and place in the lunch bag with a cut up apple.

During Halloween, Easter, or Valentines day seasons pick up a couple of extra bags of your child’s favorite candy. Add to the lunch an occasional mini treat.

Don’t forget Yogurt covered nuts or raisins. These are a nutritious and tasty snack.

Pick up sticks of yogurt or pudding and pop in the freezer. When you are making up the lunch, just remove one and place in the bag. By lunchtime they will be defrosted enough to easily eat. Even if they do stay a bit frozen, they are still a lot of fun!

FANCY WATERMELON TREATS

To make a fun treat for hot summer days, slice a seedless watermelon into 1 inch slices.

Using large cookie cutters, cut out pieces of watermelon in your favorite shapes.

Place a popsicle stick about 1 inch into the side of the cutout creating a watermelon-sicle.

Place completed watermelon-sicles onto a baking sheet that is lined with aluminum foil cover with another sheet of aluminum foil, and freeze for about 1 hour.

This is a great project for kids, and adults will love them too!

MARSHMALLOW TREAT BUGS

The next time that you make up some rice crispie treats, try this colorful creation.

Instead of using rice crispies get some fruity pebbles or cocoa pebbles.

Melt 1/4 cup margerine/butter and (1) 10 1/2 ounce package of marshmallows. Add about 8 1/2 cups of your cereal of choice.

Mix well until marshmallow covers all of the cereal evenly and is thoroughly cooled. (You will want to test some your self to make sure that your little ones don't get burned)

Now let your kids dig in and have some fun.

Let them create their own colorful bugs or animals for eating enjoyment.

Grab some packages or licorice or other candies to use for decoration.

To help keep the mixture from sticking to little hands, occasionally spray them with some non-stick cooking spray.

Sea Shell Cupcakes

My daughter and I had a bunch of fun making these great cupcakes.

We bough a chocolate mold for making sea shells. We combined some Pink and White chocolate and made seashells on Saturday.

On Sunday we made cupcakes and frosted them with blue colored frosting.

While the cupcakes were cooling we put some graham crackers in the blender.

We then placed a few pinches of graham cracker on the top of the blue frosted cup cakes for a little sandy island.

Finally we placed a sea shell on top and completed the island.

Pancakes that say "I Love You!"

If you want to have a special way to say "I Love You" create some lovin' from the kitchen.

Make up your favorite batch of Pancakes as normal.

After they are done cooking grab some cookie cutters shaped as a hearts and cut out different sizes from your pancakes.

Have some scraps? No worries, I love eating those with a small dose of maple syrup!

Cookie Surprise

These cookies are quick and easy to make. They are also fun for your kids to help make! My daughter and I made them in about 2 1/2 hours from beginning to end.

Sugar Cookie Recipe
3 1/4 cup Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 C Butter; room temperature
1 C Sugar; granulated
1 Egg
1 1/2 tsp Vanilla
1/2 C Sour Cream

Combine all dry ingredients into a bowl except the sugar, sift well. In a mixing bowl cream the butter, sugar, egg and vanilla. Mix well for 2 minutes. Add sour cream and half the dry ingredients and beat for 1 minute. Stir in remaining dry ingredients with a wooden spoon. Divide the dough in half and roll each portion out on a lightly (powdered) sugared surface to 1/2 inch thick. Cut with 2" round cookie cutter. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet in a 400°F oven for 8-10 minutes. Remove from baking sheet and cool on racks. Makes 48 cookies.

While the cookies are cooling, prepare the frosting:

1/2 Cup Butter
1/2 Cup Shortening
1 tsp Vanilla
1lb Powdered Sugar
2 Tablespoon Milk

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and whip well until light and fluffy.

Place the frosting into a pre-made pastry bag and a Wilton #12 Round Frosting tip.

Take two cookies and place them finished side down on the counter. Using the bag of frosting pipe 2 circles of frosting in the cookie. The first ring should be around the outside edge of the cookie.

The second ring should be just inside.

Place the unfrosted side on top of the frosted side, making a sandwich.

Finally, select a candy coating (Sprinkles work great!) of your choice. Gently roll the edges of your cookie into the candy so that it sticks to the frosting.

Makes 24 cookies